Milburn is a small village and civil parish in the Eden district of Cumbria, England. It is located on the northern side of the Eden Valley, about east of Penrith. The parish had a population of 171 in both the 2001, and 2011 censuses. It lies beneath Cross Fell, the highest point of the Pennines and is one of a chain of villages following the contour of the escarpment. The fellside forms part of the North Pennines Area of Natural Beauty which in 2003 was awarded the status of UNESCO European Geopark and includes the Moorhouse Upper Teesdale National Nature Reserve. The parish includes the outlying hamlets of Gullom Holme and Milburn Grange, respectively and from Milburn village centre. The core village consists of a tight cluster of houses, many dating from the mid-18th century, ranged around a roughly rectangular green. A medieval church and a fortified manor house lie outside the main village area. In 2006 the total population of the parish was approximately 170, representing a total of 74 households. Agriculture still provided the single most significant source of employment and this accounted for approximately 25% of the employment of the working population. A number of businesses offering professional and construction services now operate in the village, and local non-agricultural work accounted for the employment of a further 20%. The remaining 55% commuted out of the village to their employment. Of the total population, 30% were retired. The village retains its primary school though the majority of the pupils now come from outside the parish. History The most striking feature of Milburn is the consistency of its layout. This appears to imply a high degree of planning, and the history of the village may most usefully be described in this context. The houses round the green present a continuous frontage broken only by narrow lanes giving access to the farmyards, barns and fields which lie behind. Roads and tracks enter at the corners of the green and access is so restricted at some points that it has been suggested that the village has been constructed on defensive lines – possibly against the Border Reivers. Disappointingly, however, no buildings from "Reiving" times (late 13th to the end of the 16th century) survive, at least within the vicinity of the green itself. In fact the earliest structures here date from the mid-18th century, with the majority reflecting a major period